Shadowed Truth
by Dream Guardian
Summary: PG13 to be safe for mostly swear words and maybe some violence. Ryou finally decides that Bakura has gone far enough when he and his friends are banished to the shadow realm. With nowhere to go but out, can Ryou find the courage to stand up to Bakura?
1. First Time for Everything

Summary: Ryou decides that Bakura has gone too far when he finds himself and his friends trapped in the shadow realm to live out the rest of their lives as Bakura takes over their bodies in the real world. With nowhere to go but out, can Ryou learn to stand up to the dark spirit even though they are miles apart and help save his friends?  
  
Okay, this is my first actual fanfiction dealing with Ryou, so it might be a bit...off. Especially due to the fact that Ryou only became my favorite character recently, since somehow he moved up to tie with Yugi for the best! I've got an idea for another story that deals mainly with Yugi, but since I saw Ryou in my Shonen Jump today, I figured I'd pick on him! I always wanted Ryou to stand up to Bakura!! Anyway, I'll stop rambling and let you read! Cya!   
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, or any of the characters, plots, etc. It'd be a nice Christmas present, though...   
  
Notes: Ryou is just Ryou, and the spirit of the ring is referred to as Bakura  
  
As for when they're talking in their minds...well, the stupid computer wouldn't let me put slashes, those little star things or anything on the thing, so...I guess for a bit you're going to have to figure out who's speaking when, which shouldn't be too difficult, considering how different the personalites are. Their words are just going to be in quotations for now. Basically Ryou only uses one, and Bakura uses two, but if there's only one, then that means he's speaking. If anyone knows why the site won't let me do it, then it'd really help me to know. Thanks!

Okay, that's it! Enjoy!   
  
Shadowed Truth  
  
Chapter 1: First Time for Everything  
  
Ryou Bakura trudged down the street away from Domino High and towards his apartment glumly. He had been made to endure constant threatening remarks from the spirit of the ring the entire day at school, and yet he still tried to pay attention to his professors. This mixture eventually resulted in Ryou standing up suddenly from his seat and yelling for his yami to "Stop talking!!" in the middle of a teacher's long boring monotonous drone about something having to do with trigonometry. The teacher obviously took it to mean that it was directed towards him, and immediately shoved Ryou down the hall towards the principal, where he was promptly transferred to mopping the halls in detention the rest of the afternoon. It was around 6 or so now, and Ryou wanted desperately wanted to get home and pretend it had never happened. Yugi had offered to wait for him, but Ryou politely refused, saying it would be late when he finished anyway. He continued his walk, sighing miserably and trying to ignore the taunts in his head from the yami spirit. It wasn't the first time the spirit had gotten him into such a mess, and he didn't doubt it'd be the last. He jumped suddenly as Bakura started chuckling in his soul room. He immediately took this to mean something bad, as Bakura had a very twisted sense of humor. 

"What's so funny?" He asked quickly, partially dreading the answer. Bakura stopped laughing momentarily to answer him, a dark smirk plastered across his face.

""You, Ahou...I find it amusing that you can try and ignore my presence when I'm inside your head."" _Yeah, and I'd like to keep it that way..._Ryou thought to himself quietly, wincing when the spirit replied to the thought.

""Ah, so the little hikari does have a backbone...yet he's still obviously too cowardly to attempt to use it.""  
  
Bakura chuckled again, sending chills up Ryou's spine. He knew there was no way he could ever stand up to Bakura. The spirit could control his host's body after all, and he obviously loved to play cruel jokes on innocent bystanders. Of course after his fun he'd relinquish control to the hikari while in the middle of the police station and have a very good laugh in his soul room as Ryou tried desperately to explain to the authorities. Try as he might, he couldn't think of a way to get out of his predicament. He had personally resigned to his fate and let the spirit control his life, as he didn't think he could do anything to prevent it. He sometimes envied Yugi, who had a spirit guardian he could trust, learn from, and become friends with. His spirit, however, was the exact opposite: He was cruel, cold- hearted, a former tomb-robber, and could without a doubt not be trusted. Ryou sighed, trying to tune out the laughing in his mind. Suddenly, however, he felt the sudden shoving aside of his mind, and landed in his soul room roughly, as if someone had thrown him into it violently. He winced and got up, suddenly panicked as he realized what had happened. Bakura had taken over his body again. That could never mean something good. He frantically tried to contact his yami through their mind link, trying to figure out what he was going to be trying without his consent.  
  
"Bakura!! What are you doing?! Let me out!" He desperately tried pounding on the door to his soul room, not wanting to know what cruel game Bakura might unleash on some stranger before he could prevent it. To his surprise, he got a reply to his question from his yami.  
  
""Be quiet, baka!! I'm trying to track shadow magic!! It's hard enough as it is, even without you screaming your head off and pounding on the door! Shut up!"" Ryou immediately stopped making so much noise, not wanting to set the tomb-robber on himself. He did, however, ask another question, though much quieter this time.  
  
"There's shadow magic around here? What kind? It's not from the shadow realm is it?" Bakura smirked, chuckling quietly to himself.  
  
""What's it to you, Ahou?"" Ryou winced slightly at the nickname Bakura had kindly dubbed him with, meaning 'idiot' or 'fool', but let the dark spirit continue, hoping for an answer. ""In answer to your question, yes there is...and it is indeed from the shadow realm, which should prove quite interesting..."" He smirked again to himself before saying more. ""Quite perceptive actually...maybe you're not a complete waste after all..."" Ryou stood confusedly in his soul room at that comment. His yami had never given him even a small compliment at that, and he was at a loss for its meaning. _What could he mean by that?_ Ryou wondered to himself quietly. He didn't have long to wonder however, as Bakura had obviously found what he was searching for. "Ah...a portal to the shadow realm...how convenient...and at a perfect spot to be useable..." The dark spirit murmured to himself, smirking menacingly and observing the shadows rolling around the dark rip in the atmosphere in front of them. Ryou however, heard the dark comment the sprit made and started panicking immediately.  
  
"You're not going to drag what few friends I have into this mess!!!" He yelled loudly through his mind, scared at the possible things the spirit could do to him or his friends. Bakura grinned widely, a dark grin that didn't match his eyes, one full of vengeance, and knowing that he had complete power over the younger boy.  
  
"What a great idea, Ahou! Let's go see what your friends are up to, shall we...?" He didn't wait for a reply from the dumbstruck Ryou, but rather closed the portal within the Ring, the blue and golden aura swirling around with the shadows ominously before the portal was sealed in the ring for further use. Ryou stared in shock at the walls in his soul room. How could the spirit do this to him? After fighting him off from doing such a thing to the small group of friends he had been allowed to keep, he had left the spirit a small opening in which to escape; one tiny bit of trust had been his downfall. He turned to his door and began to pound on it loudly again, desperate to be released as the dark spirit began to walk towards Yugi's game shop, plotting to make his host gone with his friends.  
  
"No! You can't do this to me!! Leave my friends alone!! You're just aiming for me anyway!" Bakura laughed loudly, making several people on the street make a wide berth around him, for fear of getting near the tomb-robber.  
  
"Foolish mortal!!" That comment sent several other people scattering away from Bakura, each hurrying to get away from him as quickly as possible. "I am aiming for you...that's exactly why your friends are brought into this...what better way to get to a person than using their friends, hmm?" Bakura smirked at the distance everyone had put between themselves and him, which had to be a good 30 feet. Ryou started to get hopeless, just letting Bakura walk towards his friends.  
  
"Please, Bakura...you don't want to do this..." He uttered quietly, hoping against hope that the tomb-robber would listen. The spirit continued on his way, however, ignoring the fact that the hikari had said anything. Within minutes, they had arrived at Yugi's game shop, where the whole group was standing and looking at a stack of Duel Monsters cards. Bakura walked in quietly, to where the group didn't notice him at first.  
  
"Oh, c'mon, Yugi!! Convince your gramps to let me have an extension on my tab!! Please?" Yugi looked uncomfortably at Jonouchi, not wanting to be rude or not be truthful.  
  
"Well, Jonouchi...you've kind of had about 10 or so extensions already on your tab...I can't really convince him..." He shrugged and smiled at the taller teen. "Sorry, Jonouchi!" The taller boy looked slightly disappointed, but said no more on the matter as Yugi turned, realizing Ryou had walked in. "Hey, Ryou!!" He smiled at the white haired boy, not recognizing him to be the spirit of the ring. Bakura put on his best imitation of trying to act like Ryou before he spoke.  
  
"Hello, Yugi. Would you guys care to go outside with me for a moment? There's something I'd like to show you." He smiled at the group, waiting patiently for their answer. Jonouchi took a step forward, patting Bakura on the shoulder. "Sure, Ryou! Lead the way!" Bakura turned towards the door, smirking in the absence of the groups' attention. He walked out the door, going towards the side of Yugi's shop and beginning to open up the portal. The rest of the group came up behind Bakura, laughing and talking as if nothing were wrong. Yugi was the first to notice something was wrong as he watched Bakura opening the dark rip in the air, and immediately began to back up away from Bakura. Jonouchi, noticing Yugi's panicked expression began to ask him what was wrong, only to be cut off by Bakura's yell of "Mortal fools!!!" and his manic laughter filling the alleyway as the group was torn from their bodies and into the gaping hole.  
  
"Stop, Bakura!!! NO! PLEASE!!!" Bakura lost his concentration for a moment at the sound of Ryou's voice, only to laugh louder.  
  
"You too, Ahou!! In, now!!" Ryou gasped as he felt a sudden pulling sensation as the portal began to pull him in. The last thing he saw and heard was his own face, marred by Bakura's twisted humor, and will to seriously do anything cruel he could think of to his host, with no signs of pity, remorse, guilt, or anything remotely human about it.

Well, there it is...I guess it's kinda short, but I got sorta lazy towards the end, and I figured it was a good place to stop...Well? How was it? Was it good enough to keep going with? Or can I just forget about writing with Ryou in my stories? '  
  
Ryou: Forget it!!  
  
DG: I kinda like torturing you. It was fun! Bakura was particularly sadistic in this, though...  
  
Ryou: -- "Yeah, and you were too....  
  
DG: Nope, just Bakura! Anyway, ignore Ryou...he complains too much! Please review!! 


	2. Reflected Soul

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh...Shocking, isn't it?  
  
Reviews:  
  
**Arnath Nightblade:** Thanks for reviewing!! You were my first person to review! Yay for you! I'm glad you liked it! Lucky for you, there will be some duels in this story, and descriptive duels at that. The first one will probably be next chapter, so it won't be long. Thanks again!   
  
**Random1965:** Glad you liked the story! You're right about that sentence: It didn't really make much sense...Thanks for pointing it out! Hope you like this chapter too!   
  
Errr...There was another person that reviewed, but he/she didn't appear quick enough, so I'll have to add them later or something.

Oh, yeah...Do you like shorter chapters that are updated more frequently, or longer chapters that are updated less frequently? Just curious....

I dunno....this might work....I've noticed that if I only put one slash, dash, etc, then it'll let me save it that way, so...

/Ryou to Bakura(either one)/

-Bakura to Ryou-

These both work with Yugi and Yami as well.  
  
Well, that's it! Enjoy!   
  
Chapter 2: Reflected Soul  
  
The darkness was total: shadows enclosed every familiar object of light and happiness. Everything that was once familiar became dark, cold, and forgotten. Whenever Ryou screamed for help, however long he ran through the abyss, no small hint of light or hope would show itself. The shadows were enclosing upon their prey, hungrily chasing after him through the nightmare. He couldn't see where he was going; for all he knew he could be running right at the shadows snapping their jaws at him. Of course, right now, everywhere he turned was a shadow. Suddenly a pinprick of light began to emerge from the darkness, eventually evolving into an enormous maze as he ran further, the walls stretching seemingly miles high. The white-haired teen dashed as fast as he could towards the maze, not knowing what he was going to do once he got there, but determined to do so all the same. The rapture-filled light beckoned to him lovingly, inviting him into its dwelling. After what seemed like an eternity, he came to the entrance. He skidded to a halt, holding onto the wall for support and panting hard from his dash. Regaining his composure, he turned towards the direction he thought the shadows had been chasing him from, gasping as the sight met his eyes. The rippling shadows were inches from the entrance to the maze, yet they snarled menacingly at the maze, seeming as if they couldn't get in no matter how hard they tried. The light seared and burned them every time one tried to enter the maze. After several moments, the shadows began to back away, still growling lowly and threateningly at him as they backed off in defeat. Ryou stood there for several moments, not entirely sure of where to go or what to do next. Then, realizing that that particular dilemma was over, he turned to the inside of the maze, and began trudging down its corridors.

At first, walking down the halls towering so high above him was just out of sheer curiosity. However, after an hour or so it began to get extremely frustrating. Every time he thought he saw an opening in the labyrinth, he would run towards it hopefully, wondering if it was an exit, only to be cut off by the walls yet again. So far he hadn't been entirely enclosed by the stone walls; he always had another way to go, but the way was open, it would always be cut off and he would be lead a new way. The teen was beginning to wonder if this was all a trick, and he was being lead like a dog on a leash to wherever the controller of the labyrinth desired him to go. After wandering down the corridors in this manner for quite some time, he came to the next hallway, and stopped cold in his tracks.

The next hall was filled with shadows, and was nearly as dark as the landscape (if there even was one) outside of the maze. Spooked, he turned quickly back to go the opposite way, before realizing with a shock that there was no opposite route to turn to. The walls seemed to shrink in on him, forcing the teen closer and closer to the shadow-filled hallway. Panic began to set in on Ryou, and he started to pound his fists on the nearest corridor wall.  
  
"Help!! Someone please!" He paused for a moment as a sudden thought struck him.

/Bakura? Bakura?!!/ He stood in utter shock for a moment, not hearing the reply of his abusive yami. Sure, Bakura wasn't the greatest person to have around, but for some reason it comforted Ryou to hear the spirit's voice; menacing or not. He somehow felt empty without the other presence in his mind, and had no idea what to do. Running out of room, he plunged into the dark corridor on impulse, running down it at full tilt, wanting more than anything to reach the exit. He collided into a wall suddenly, seeing stars from the impact. Standing up somewhat shakily, he leaned against the wall for a moment before realizing the plain fact that stood blatantly in front of his face: There was no exit at all. Panic and fear began to rise in Ryou again as the shadows began to close in, trying to surround him on all sides. He slid down the wall helplessly, having no idea what to do and resigned to his fate. However, all of a sudden, there was an obviously large source of light coming from above his head.

"Ryou!!" The voice called desperately, a mirror of Ryou's own emotions at the time. The voice was familiar and warm somehow, even though it was heavy with panic and worry. Ryou reached out to touch the light, being drawn towards it by the hope that it carried with its call. The light seemed to pull him up, almost like someone was grasping hold of his hand, and carried him out of the darkness, his fear and desperation slowly receding as he was brought out of the nightmare. He suddenly found himself on solid ground, staring up at a wide-eyed Yugi and a worried Jonouchi.

"Ryou!" Yugi looked relieved to see that his friend was okay and smiled widely at him, all worries seemingly forgotten for the moment. Ryou sat up, glancing around at his surroundings, and his face fell at the sight. For as far as the eye could see, darkness swirled about the landscape, and the supposed 'ground' Ryou was sitting on seemed to be solid shadow. Gratefully, though, there were no alive-seeming shadows snarling in the distance or close for that matter. "Ryou, are you okay?" Yugi glanced at his friend in concern, wondering why he had gone so long without saying anything and just staring off into the distance. Ryou turned back to Yugi quickly, nodding slightly in reply.

"Y-yes, I'm fine, Yugi. I-"He trailed off, having seen the being standing over Yugi's shoulder watchfully and protectively. "Yami?! How...? I thought..." He trailed off yet again, searching for words to illustrate his question. Yugi glanced up at the spirit for a moment before turning back to Ryou.

"We don't know how we ended up separated...I just...came to, and there he was, divided from me and in his own seemingly real body." Yugi shrugged, not really knowing how else he could explain it to the taller teen, when he didn't really understand it himself. Ryou stood up, swaying slightly as he did so. Jonouchi caught him quickly, steadying him so that he wouldn't lose his balance. During that moment he had felt as though an enormous amount of strength had been sapped from him, leaving him beaten and tired. Looking at his three companions surrounding him, and those in the distance gathered together talking quietly, he noticed that everyone except Yami looked fatigued to some degree. Yami glanced around quickly as well, and, seeing this too, he narrowed his eyes at himself in disgust, wondering how he could've forgotten something so hard to miss.

"Why didn't I think of that before?! Mortals need some type of shield or protection in this realm to last any length of time, and I didn't put up any protection." He walked several feet off, closing his eyes as the others watched curiously, interested in whatever the spirit was about to do.

"What's he doing, Yugi?" Jonouchi asked the smaller teen quietly, looking at Yami in mild curiosity. Yugi turned around to him, glancing up at him for a moment before answering his query.

"I'm not entirely sure, but I think he's making a form of barrier between each of us and the shadow realm so that hopefully we'll last much longer than we would completely exposed to the shadow magic." After a few moments, Yami walked over towards the large group again, task having been completed.

"Well...what now?" Honda asked bluntly, shrugging his shoulders and waiting for an answer. The group fell into silence, contemplating their options in their heads, not really knowing what to do or where to go at all. Ryou shifted nervously on his feet, standing at the back of the group with his head down staring at the solid-shadow 'floor'. Why aren't they blaming me? He asked himself, not expecting someone to hear him and answer back.

-Because you didn't do anything, hikari...-Ryou yelped and jumped up at the unexpected answer to his question, causing the others in his group to send him perplexed stares.

"What's wrong, Ryou?" Yugi queried quietly, raising his eyebrows at Ryou as the taller boy sat sprawled on the ground from the sudden surprise.  
  
"I..." What could he say to them, really? His yami had sent them there in the first place, and was he just supposed to tell them that he had heard him in his head again? _My life is so complicated..._He shook his head ruefully, sighing as he turned to the group again.

"It's nothing, really..." He pulled himself off the ground, avoiding the stares of the other teens determinedly. The voice, however, had other plans for him. -

-So that's what you plan to do? Just ignore me? I know you can't ignore my existence, for I am a part of you.-Ryou managed to keep his composure slightly better than before, only showing a fleetingly surprised and scared look on his face.

/You're not Bakura, are you?/ The question was more of a statement towards the voice, and there was silence before it answered to it.

-In a sense, yes...But judging from the way you seem so scared of me, I doubt I'm the one you're referring to.-Without warning, a sudden stream of Egyptian curses rang loudly through his head in a low growl.

-_When I find out who messed up the portal, I--_The voice was cut off suddenly, leaving the listeners to their imaginations. Ryou's eyes widened significantly at the much more murderous, vengeful tone of his yami's voice.

-What's he up to now? Is he the one that sent you here?-Ryou started, slightly surprised at this statement before asking a question of his own.

/Y-you mean you didn't say that?/ The voice seemed slightly confused at the statement for a moment, only to answer in a slightly accused voice.

-No, of course not!-_This is so confusing..._Ryou thought to himself, carefully guarding his thoughts from the spirit now residing in his head.

/Then you're not-/ He was cut off by the sudden exclamation of Jonouchi, directed at him.

"Well, you're being awfully quiet over there, Ryou. Any suggestions on where to go?" The group turned to him, expecting an answer from him. Ryou blushed faintly in the presence of all the stares.

"Umm..." He racked his brain for an answer, not expecting one since obviously even Yami didn't know where to go even though he was much more familiar with the realm they were currently in. He was brought out of his thoughts by a sudden mental tap on his shoulder from the spirit.

-I'm not sure if you quite trust me yet or not, but there's a lit-up place up ahead. It looked to me like a city when I first saw it from a distance. You could try it.- The spirit shrugged. Ryou gave the spirit a mental stare of bewilderment.

/What?! Were you living here or something?!/ The spirit thought about it for a moment, pondering an answer.

-In a sense, yes. I was sent here for a reason not even very clear to myself. I've spent a while just wandering the shadows, not really having a destination. So, as you might see, I was just as shocked as you to find myself inside of you. It startled me, actually, because where I come from, you aren't so...kind, to be put into light terms...-

Ryou snapped back to reality for a moment, only to face impatient faces.

-Perhaps we should continue this some other time...- The spirit proposed, prompting the hikari to share the information with his friends.

"Err..I think there's something lit up over in that general direction." He pointed off into the distance behind him, indicating where the spirit had said. The group, in turn turned around to Yami for his consent.

"We have no other advice to go on. I suggest we try Ryou's idea." He began to walk off into that direction, followed by the rest of the group. Yami was beginning to show the first signs of weariness from supporting so many spells at one time: His normally regal stance was slightly slacked, there were dark purple circles under his eyes, and he dragged his feet, rather than walked towards the destination. Noticing this, Yugi walked closer to him, concern etching his features.

/Hey, Yami?/ He relaxed slightly under the answering thrum of his partner, walking beside him quietly. /Are you okay? You sure you don't want me to help a bit?/ Yugi could see that he wanted to relinquish some of the effort of supporting so many spells to Yugi, but if he thought this, he didn't tell Yugi.

-No, I'm fine, Aibou...-Yugi frowned at him, knowing that the statement was a lie.

/No you're not, Yami. And you know it. C'mon, let me help! You're supporting 5 really complicated spells at one time. Please?/ Yami seemed to lose some of his determined resolute at the sound of those words, and loosened up, letting Yugi take a portion of the spell from him. A heavy weight seemed to fall on Yugi, making him sway slightly as Yami reached out to steady him. The strength it took out of him to hold the spell together was staggering, but he was glad to be helping his yami support such an impossible amount of magic.

A few feet away, Ryou was having his own conversation with his companion spirit. /Okay, so let me straighten this out: You're not from the same realm as me./ He paused, waiting for the spirit's confirmation of this fact, trudging along the shadow-ground behind the rest of the group.

-Correct.- Ryou nodded, still not entirely believing what the spirit had told him in the past 10 minutes.

/And you expect me to believe that everything in your realm has happened exactly the opposite of how it happened here?/

-Yes. The Nazis won WWII, the South won the Civil War in America, making slavery still legal, pretty much every event you can think of was reversed.-Ryou stared at the ground in bewilderment, not believing what he heard with his own ears. _So does that mean...?_ He trailed off, then, quite suddenly asked the spirit another question.

/Does that mean that people are switched too? You mean to say that all the yami spirits are good like their hosts are here and vice-versa?/ The other Bakura knitted his brows together, trying to figure out how to explain the events of his universe to the boy in front of him.

-Not entirely...Yugi and his spirit companion are still the same...with one exception: Yami never sealed the shadow games away.- Ryou gasped in surprise at the sudden realization that went through his mind. _He means to say that the shadow games are still at their peak where he's from...the monsters still run rampant, destroying everything in their path..._

_/_So you mean to say that the world is in complete chaos. Am I correct?/ The other Bakura nodded his head mentally. When he spoke, his words had a solemn tone to them.

-I'm afraid so, Aibou...- Ryou jerked his head up in surprise, not expecting such a name from the spirit that looked so much like his yami. _He calls the other Ryou_ "Aibou"_?_

-I'm sorry, I guess I was remembering the times when my own partner was so much like you...-The spirit trailed off into his own thoughts, reliving his own memories. Ryou frowned for a moment, deciding whether or not to ask the dark spirit about it. He sighed, deciding to ask quickly before he lost the courage to do so.

/You mean the hikaris weren't always...err...reflected versions of the ones here?/ Ryou frowned again, trying to find another way to put it, realizing that his query wasn't exactly easy to understand. Bakura, however, must have found out what the hikari was trying to say, and answered him with a somber expression on his face.

-Actually, our entire world was once almost exactly like your own. However, something came along to change all of that.- Ryou shot the spirit a questioning look, waiting for him to continue.

-Well...-The opposite Bakura paused, searching for words to explain the event.

/Go on./ Ryou said encouragingly to the spirit, eager for an answer. Bakura heaved a meta-physical sigh before continuing reluctantly.

-Things had begun to get out of hand very quickly with the shadow games running rampant. Believe it or not, there are quite a few modern people with ties to Egypt; therefore many people are able to wield magical abilities. Normally most people are ignorant enough to avoid getting caught up in anything magical, but with the magic staring them straight in the face, there was no way they could steer clear of the fact that they could control magic at their will. Of course, just as with everything, there will be some people to misuse the power they were granted, so things began to get out of control due to that fact.-He sighed again before continuing.

-In a desperate attempt to bring some form of organization to the chaotic world, a group of us banded together to form a group known as "Millennium Light". Yes, I know it's not really the best of names, but it didn't really matter at the time.- Ryou interrupted suddenly, a question forming in his mind.

/But-but weren't you...err.../

-The same Bakura you know?- Ryou nodded quietly, a slightly shaken look on his face.

-Is he really that bad?- Ryou nodded silently again, eyes reflecting his fear. The opposite Bakura sighed, not sure what to make of the boy's fear. However, he continued on with his story, deciding to worry about it after he had explained the situation to the boy.

-In answer to your question; yes, I was. Maybe not quite as abusive as you seem to let on that I am in your realm, but I was still the Bakura you have come to know.- Ryou shot the spirit a mental glance of disbelief, slight confusion and fear reflecting from his brown eyes.

/But then...then why did you help?/ Bakura frowned for a moment, pondering his answer.

-It didn't matter to me if I was siding with the pharaoh or not. What mattered to me was stopping the damned force that caused every ounce of misery I faced in my youth.- Bakura growled out lowly, then suddenly stopped himself as if he had said too much. Ryou however, wanted desperately to know what he had been going on to say, intrigued to find out maybe some reason behind his yami's personality. Seeing this, Bakura decided to say just a bit more to satisfy the boy.

-The shadow games were literally born of my suffering and pain. Magic that powerful does not come cheap, unfortunately.-Bakura stopped again, an angry, vengeful expression plastered on his face much like the spirit Ryou had to endure sharing a body and mind with all day, everyday. Ryou wanted desperately to know more, but seeing the look on Bakura's face, he decided to wait for a better time to ask all the questions flying through his mind. Bakura sighed mentally, deciding to continue with his story despite the murderous thoughts that were running through his head currently.

-Anyway, with the forming of a group against the shadow games, there rose a group that was all for them, and encouraged their growth of power. For lack of a better name, they dubbed themselves "Millennium Shadow".-

-Our group consisted of everyone here with you right now, along with Mokuba and Seto Kaiba. Of course there were other people, but not many, because as time went on, many began to fear fighting the growing power of the shadow games. Cowards either sided with Millennium Shadow or didn't take sides at all; just sat back and let their world be destroyed. However, despite our small numbers, we tended to give them some trouble. Most all of us could wield shadow magic, not to mention several have great prowess with a blade.- He smirked as a thought came to mind. Come to think of it, you are one of them.- Ryou's eyes widened in surprise.

/Really?/ The opposite Bakura nodded, smiling at his other half's surprise.  
  
-Most all of the people in front of you have that talent, believe it or not. Anyway, our side had actually been winning the battle, and they could see that very clearly. Slowly our world began to return to the way it had been previously, and we were happy to see the progress, however slow it might be. One factor we didn't count on, though, was that if the tables were turned, and _our_ forces were on the opposite side, then _they_ would be winning, not us. We didn't expect our own people to turn on us, because they just _wouldn't_ ; They were too loyal.

-Unbeknownst to us, however, the shadows were hungry, and demanded a duel. We didn't know at the time that we would be the ones in the battle, not some normal group of people off the street like usual. He paused for a moment, Ryou listening with rapt attention to his tale. Bakura took a deep breath and continued.

-So, during a raid on the Shadow's building, several of the top ranking officials caught us on the way there and demanded a duel. We weren't truly worried about it; after all, we always won the shadow duels we were challenged to. However, Malik, the leader of their force, had a plan up his sleeve that he had obviously concocted for a long while. During the duel he managed to summon some monster we had never heard of, nor seen in our entire lives. It was just a big, bright silver ball of light, and we eventually forgot about it during the duration of the duel.-

-After a while, it became very clear that we were winning the duel, and that they didn't have much hope of winning. It was at that moment that Malik surrendered. We all thought it was a trick; and it turns out that it was. After all of the rest of the monsters had disappeared, that silver ball of light was still there. We began to back away from it, but it was too late. It exploded, and each of us had the curious sensation of being split in half and rearranged. Supposedly every being has a dark and a light half, creating a balance that can be found in all things. In that moment, the balance was turned upside down, and we were almost all switched.-

-The few that stayed intact as they had been were Yugi and Yami, due to the fact that they cast a barrier spell moments before the thing went off. Kaiba and Mokuba also stayed the same, but as to why, I have no idea. Jonouchi, who was also under Yami's shield, managed to maintain his personality as well, but I'm afraid almost everyone else was switched. Malik also managed to stay the way he was, mostly due to the fact that he had fair warning and knew to seek magical protection.- Bakura sighed once again before continuing.

-After that, we began to piece together what we had left and tried to bring the organization back that we once had. Unfortunately, our efforts seemed to not have nearly the effect we wanted them to. We began to notice that our enemies were way ahead of us in reforming, but we still fought back, trying to keep what we fought for.-

-Eventually I met up with my other half, and we had a shadow duel. I still don't know how this could've happened, but I lost. My guess is that that's the reason I'm here right now with you. And that's pretty much it. I don't know how else to explain it to you.-

Ryou walked quietly in the company of his friends, mind mulling over the information the opposite Bakura had given him. The world Bakura knew was so different from the world Ryou knew, yet still similar in some ways. How could a world exist when every event and person had been completely switched? Every outcome of every battle had been switched. Some of the victories were crucial to make the world the way it currently was. And furthermore, how could Bakura fight against his own spirit companion with no feeling of remorse or regret? Didn't it bother Bakura to see his aibou completely opposite of how he had come to know him? Granted, the Bakura that Ryou had come to know wouldn't fret over it, but this Bakura seemed different somehow. It sounded to Ryou like even before dark and light were switched that Bakura had some sense of moral and protected his host somewhat. And what could that monster have been? What could have the power to switch yin and yang? Ryou shook his head as a fine pounding began in his temples. It was all too confusing at the moment, and all he wanted right now was to forget that his yami had ever sent them to the shadow realm.

He looked up at his companions for the first time in an hour, and noticed that they looked somewhat worn down as well. Most all of them looked exhausted, but Yugi and Yami even more so. Ryou, of course wasn't aware that they had each been supporting several strong spells for hours now, and he just figured that it had taken more of a toll on them than on the others. He only hoped that for everyone's sake that they would reach their destination soon.

Several hours later, there was still no sign of their goal. Everyone looked on the verge of collapsing, Jonouchi supporting Yugi and Yami as they walked. Ryou tentatively asked the spirit a question.

/Exactly how far was that place from here?/ Bakura frowned mentally, as if confused by them not reaching their destination yet.

-We should be here by now...I don't know what could have caused this...it was definitely there beforehand...you saw it too, didn't you?- Ryou nodded quietly, dragging his feet as he walked.

-I don't know what could've happened.- They all trudged along in silence towards an unknown destination, growing more fatigued with every step. The opposite Bakura even offered to take over his host's body for a while, and Ryou gladly accepted despite any bit of mistrust he still had for the spirit.

About an hour later, Yugi finally collapsed, Yami looking like he was close to it as well, but still held strong to hold the shields up.

"What happened to him?" Tea asked bluntly, unaware of how dumb her question sounded. Yami, in turn, answered her question nonetheless.

"When we first set out, I had to make shields for you all, correct?" The group nodded their heads, most of them either paying rapt attention to the former pharaoh, or looking at Yugi in concern. "Well, since it was so many spells at once, he offered to take some of the spells off my hand, therefore reducing the amount of strength it took out of us. He's fine, just exhausted from supporting that much magic at one time. However, we need to hurry to that place Ryou mentioned before we all end up like that." Jonouchi nodded and picked up Yugi, signifying for them to continue on.

About another hour later, the exhausting trip was brought to an abrubt end as they reached a city covered in light. It seemed almost unreal to the small group of teens after such a long trudge through the shadows. The light reflected off their faces, making them seem ghostly pale, which in some cases, they already were.

The city was full of towering skyscrapers, seeming to reach up to the heavens and touch the sky. Each building was almost surrounded in an aura of bright glowing golden and silver light. A glowing silver gate into the city topped it all off like icing on a cake. They blindly walked towards it, not really knowing what else to do. They stopped mere feet from the gate, coming to a halt and staring up at the towering, glowing gate. The gate began to open slowly, beckoning them in. The group stood, staring at the city in awe until Yami spoke up.

"The City of Light..." He uttered simply, his awe evident in his voice. They slowly walked through the gate, each one of them wanting nothing more than somewhere to stay, all of them exhausted beyond belief. Once inside the gates, Yami finally collapsed, and the shields faded away for lack of someone supporting them. However, as Ryou waited for the overwhelming feeling of the shadows closing in, it didn't come, but they seemed safe; as if the shadows would never enter the city filled with light. It appeared that they were completely safe. Realizing this, Honda bent down and scooped up Yami, and they began to walk to the center of the city. For the moment, they were safe.

* * *

Bakura growled, kicking random objects out of his way on the sidewalk. Anyone glancing at the tomb robber immediately yelped and scurried off, not wanting to be in the tomb robber's way for fear of that being the last action they ever took.

Bakura was headed to Kaiba Corp, not for Kaiba, but for the technology he possessed. With the group's bodies lying abandoned in the alleyway, he needed a place to hide them, or he would be facing the police. The first place he thought of was Kaiba Corp. They had access to the status of practically every building, and there were bound to be some empty, abandoned ones that no one used currently.

However, one other predicament on his mind was that someone had tampered with the shadow magic he had cast to send the group through the portal. Somehow, amazingly, he was hearing the thoughts of his lighter half, and of a voice that sounded remarkably like his own, but with entirely different thoughts: thoughts that weren't his. He didn't know how it could've happened, or who the voice could be, and it annoyed him to no end.

As he traipsed through the building, he noticed that security here was actually quite slack. For all Kaiba's rants about security, he barely had any at all. Of course, to a normal person the security would seem severe. But Bakura was the king of thieves, and this was nothing to him. He took the elevator up to the eighth floor, growling at any misfortunate personnel that happened to cross his path. One woman went on without looking, just desperate to get home, and not noticing the practically bright, glowing neon sign that said "Looming threat" until Bakura growled lowly at her entrance and shot her a venomous glare. She scurried out as quickly as she possibly could, trying to get away as fast as she could. She would probably be taking stairs the rest of her life.

Finally, with a ding the elevator drew to a halt at the filing floor. Records were kept here of the entire city at the very least, not to mention any other city, and/or country Kaiba Corp happened to have ties with. Bakura was partially thankful that no one was on the floor, as everyone had already gone home for the night. He didn't want this to take long, as he had business to attend to.

He hacked into a computer and searched the files casually, looking for something resembling a city map. Eventually he came across one, and searched the perimeter of the city for an empty building. He smirked as he found one nearby Yugi's shop, convenient enough for hauling them in, a task that, with Ryou's scrawny frame, would be hard to complete if the building was far away.

He shut the machine down, and made his way out the door, coming to a stop suddenly as he spotted a tall figure down the hall. The figure began to make his way towards Bakura, coming into full view under the moonlight coming from a nearby window. Seto Kaiba.

"Well, well, _Bakura..."_ He said the name almost tauntingly, knowing full well that it was the spirit of the ring and not Ryou. "What brings you here so late at night when my unsuspecting employees are home for the night already?" He smirked in the moonlight, his sapphire eyes gleaming under the mop of brown hair.

"What do you want, Kaiba?" Bakura stated coldly, wanting to get this over with as quickly as possible. Kaiba glared at the thief, his eyes burning coals in the moonlight.

"What I want, Bakura, is something you have stolen that you can't give me back. Information doesn't come cheap around here, I'm afraid." Bakura sneered at this, chuckling lowly at the taller teen.

"And exactly what possesses you to believe that I can't get away with what I've already stolen? I'm a master of thieves, remember that, Seto Kaiba. You don't want to challenge me." Bakura smirked, standing in an almost lazy position as he watched the former duel monsters champion take in this statement.

"You still do have something I want other than that, Bakura. You have a ready challenge, and I want it." Bakura bowed mockingly at the teen, pale white hair hiding the smirk playing across his face.

"Then by all means, Kaiba, take it." He came back to his original stance, crossing his arms and looking at Kaiba defiantly. "Would you care to duel?" Kaiba smirked, eyes gleaming with a newfound challenge.  
  
"With pleasure, Bakura...With pleasure..."  
  
Well, there it is! Hope it was okay. I guess it could've been longer, but I decided to post it as is since I won't be able to write for two days. Such torture!!! Anyway, I hope to come back to big, fat reviews if you want to see any dueling, or what happened to the group in the shadow realm, or any other surprises. Anyway, REVIEW and make me HAPPY!!!


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